As described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,868,289 and 7,016,725 each of which is incorporated herein by reference, and in U.S. patent application Ser. Nos. 11/111,439 (filed Apr. 21, 2005 and published as US2005/0209642) and Ser. No. 11/537,026 (filed Sep. 29 2006), each of which is incorporated herein by reference, intermediate frequency (100-300 kHz) alternating electric fields, (referred to herein as “TTFields”) damage as well as inhibit the growth of numerous types of cancer cells in vitro as well as a number of malignancies in vivo. The efficacy of the treatment is enhanced by sequentially applying fields of varying directions and by the use of special insulated electrodes.
TTFields act by two mechanisms of action: First, they disrupt the normal polymerization-depolymerization process of the spindle microtubules during mitosis. Secondly, they cause a physical disruption of cells towards the end of cytokinesis by producing a unidirectional force on all charge, polar and polarizable intracellular constituents, pushing them towards the narrow neck between the two daughter cells. See Kirson, E. D., et al., Disruption of cancer cell replication by alternating electric fields, Cancer Res., 2004. 64(9): p. 3288-95, which is incorporated herein by reference.
Drugs and radiation therapy are more conventional approaches to treating cancer. One example is Cisplatin or cis-diamminedichloroplatinum(II) (CDDP), which is a platinum-based chemotherapy drug used to treat various types of cancers, including sarcomas, some carcinomas (e.g. small cell lung cancer and ovarian cancer), lymphomas and germ cell tumors. It was the first member of its class, which now also includes carboplatin and oxaliplatin. Another example is Paclitaxel, more commonly referred to by the trade name Taxol®, which is a member of the larger family of compounds known as taxanes. Currently, Paclitaxel is used in the treatment of breast, ovarian, certain non-small-cell lung cancers, and Kaposi's sarcoma.